BftlllkflDS OF 

GOUIRMGEOUS 



MARSBUL DElANCEY HAYWOOD 




Class / ^ yfj<j. 
Book_ H l^ g 



Co»iightN". 



COFk'R!GHT DEPOSIT. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



BALLADS 

of 

Courageous Carolinians 



SOME VERSIFIED LEGENDS 
of THE OLD NORTH STATE 
FOUNDED UPON FACT 
FANCY AND FICTION 



BY 

Marshall DeLancey Haywood 



"of thine own country sin^." — Wallace 

"Od's-life! must one swear to the truth of a song?" — Prior 



BALEIOH 

BDWABDS & BBOUGHTON PBINTINO CO. 

1914 



t:," 



> 255 



Copyright 1914 

BY 

Marshall DeLancey Haywood 



0^^^-4 1914 



4 ./^S-^ 

G!,A387821 



To 



president of 
The North Carolina Society of the Cincinnati 

IN PEACE and in WAR A LOYAL NORTH CAROLINIAN 

and a worthy representative of heroic 
revolutionary ancestors 

This Work is Inscribed 

AS A 
TOKEN OF FRIENDSHIP AND ADMIRATION 



CONTENTS 



Old Colonial Days - - - - 7 

Roanoke Island _ _ - - 8 

Blackbeard the Corsair - - - 12 
The Mecklenburg Declaration of 

Independence - - - - 16 

The Masons of '76 - - - - 20 
The Flint-Lock Rifle — Battle op 

Moore's Creek Bridge - - - 30 

King's Mountain - - - - 36 

The Turkey and the Judge - - - 42 

Zebulon Baird Vance _ - - 45 

To Our Confederate Dead - - - 46 

A Toast: To the Sons of the Revolution 48 

Reveries of a Tar-Heel Scribe - - 49 



BALLADS of COURAGEOUS CAROLINIANS 



Old Colonial Days 

To the present let us bid adieu 
And with the past commune; 

As Holy Writ enjoins, we'll view 
The rock whence we are hewn. 

Tales of a brave and warlike race 

My pages will unfold — 
Of peace and strife, of death and life, 

Of word and action bold. 

I'll seek to tell of men long gone, 

Of long forgotten ways. 
And how our fathers wrought and fought 

In old colonial days. 



1903. 



8 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



Roanoke Island 

Ob the Landing of Captain Ralph Lane, with Sie Walter 
Raleigh's Colonists on the Coast of Cakolina in 1585. 

If sandy hills could only tell 
What deeds in ancient days befell, 
We first would hear of Redskin braves 
Whose bones now moulder in their graves. 

And then upon this western shore, 
Where Christian never trod before. 
Bold Raleigh's voyagers were seen — 
Sent hither by the English Queen. 

Above their ships within the bay 
Floated St. George's banner gay, 
While on the decks, for action set. 
Stood culverin and falconet. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 9 



Then Captain Lane, with eye serene, 
Gazed proudly on the quiet scene; 
And when his voice the silence broke. 
In solemn tones he slowly spoke : 

*^My noble men — so true and brave 
When tempest-tossed upon the wave — 
In safety we have now been brought 
To this good haven which we sought. 

"This fertile land, so fair and green. 
We claim of right for Britain's Queen, 
And our good blades, on land and main, 
Shall guard it from the fleets of Spain. 



10 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



"In Holy Scriptures we may read 
A man once took a mustard seed 
And cast it in a garden fair, 
When soon its branches filled the air. 

^"^We plant a nation ! — may it stand 
For all that makes a noble land ; 
And English laws shall rule this State 
Where dwell the happy, wise, and great. 

"May God, to Whom our fathers ]Drayed, 
Still shelter those who seek His aid ; 
And may His favor rest on all 
Who gather at our Sovereign's call. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 11 



"So up St. George, and down with Spain ! 
Long may onr Queen in honor reign ! 
We'll sweep her foes from every sea, 
And make this western country free!" 



1913. 



12 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



Blackbeard the Corsair 

Being an Account of the Mateimonial and Pieatioal 
Exploits of a Noted Navigatob. 

On tlie coast of Carolina, 

In the dim and distant past, 
Lived a gay and fearless pirate, 

Who could weather any blast ; 
And all the ladies madly loved 

This buccaneer so bold. 
Who wore a gorgeous uniform 

With epaulets of gold. 

He had thirteen loving spouses 

To share his earthly joys. 
He had several hundred daughters 

And ninety little boys; 
And when within the nursery 

These brats began to cry, 
He'd start out on a voyage — 

In a ship he didn't buy. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 13 



He raised his sable standard 

Beside the Spanish main, 
Then scuttled twenty galleons, 

And started north again; 
In bleak JSTew England's waters 

He rode before the gale, 
And for the coast of Africa 

Put forth his dreaded sail. 

Along the sands of Guinea 

He went in search of gold, 
And came off with some natives 

Stored snugly in his hold; 
When he was home again, he said 

He'd sell his human goods 
To planters on the Albemarle 

In Carolina's woods. 



14 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



Then he returned to Oeracoke 

And, as he looked around, 
He thought he saw two merchant ships 

Come sailing through the sound ; 
"We'll take these now/' the corsair said, 

"And soon will have them plundered" — 
But, as he spoke these careless words, 

Two crashing broadsides thundered! 

What he had thought were merchant ships, 

Like drones without a sting. 
Were sloops of war from Hampton Roads, 

Sent out bj England's King ! 
They shot the pirate's sails to shreds, 

Thej slaughtered all his crew, 
They made his boat a floating wreck, 

And cut his neck in two. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 15 



High on a mast his head they kept — 

A warning sad and dire ! — 
While all his little children wept 

To lose their noble sire ; 
And all his winsome widows, too, 

With grief would nearly choke 
When thinking of their lover true 

Who died at Ocracoke. 

So now, my friends, to end this lay, 

A moral let me press — 
Don't act as did this rover gay 

And marry to excess ; 
Eor wives galore engender strife. 

And you will have to roam. 
Or pass away your weary life 

With squalling babes at home. 



1911. 



16 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



The Mecklenburg Declaration 
of Independence 

At Charlotte, N. C, Mat 20, 1775. 

You have heard of bloody exploits 

And deeds of daring done ; 
You have heard of matchless valor, 

In battles, lost and won ; 
You have heard of armies fighting 

With frenzied desperation, 
But what I now relate was done 

With cool deliberation. 

The patriots of Mecklenburg 

Were men of spirit bold, 
Who scorned to wear a tyrant's chains, 

Or profit by his gold ; 
They loved their native forests. 

Their mountains and their streams, 
And freedom was the only thought 

That filled their daily dreams. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 17 



So to the trusty Polk they said : 

^'The time still nearer draws, 
When we shall strike our fetters off, 

Or die in Freedom's cause ; 
Be watchful of our sacred rights, 

We'll gather at your call. 
And, rising in our righteous wrath. 

Will break our country's thrall." 

With this they journeyed homeward. 

To rest until the day 
That they were called together 

In the pleasant month of May ; 
And then, in solemn council. 

They gathered to proclaim 
'Twas death to aid oppressors. 

Or their country's honor shame. 



18 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



Then rang with fierce defiance: 

'We'll serve no earthly king ! 
They've stirred the dreaded 'Hornets' Nest/ 

They'll feel the hornets' sting ! 
Our countrymen at Lexington 

Inhumanly were slain, 
And now, with God's assistance, 

Our freedom will we gain !" 

Then came the Eevolution 

That shook this mighty land, 
And the thundering of cannon 

Was heard on every hand ; 
Our rifles dealt destruction 

From the mountains to the sea, 
And the people of America 

Became forever free. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 19 



All hail to Carolina ! 

First of the ^^Old Thirteen'' 
To face the wrath of Britain's King 

With calm and fearless mien ; 
All honor to old Mecklenburg 

And her great Declaration, 
And to the men who first conceived 

The freedom of our !N"ation. 



1893. 



20 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



The Masons of '76 

A TALE OF THE GEAND LODGE OF AMERICA, AT HALIFAX, NORTH 

Carolina, which ceased work during the War of the 
Revolution in consequence of the facts that Provin- 
cial Grand Master Josei'h Montfort expired at the 
beginning of hostilities, Deputy Provincial Grand 
Master Cornelius Harnett died in a British prison at 
Wilmington, and Provincial Grand Secretary Wil- 
liam Beimaoe was exiled for Toryism by the Ameri- 
cans. 

In Halifax, renowned of old, 
I've heard a stirring legend told, 
How Masons of an ancient day 
Were ruled by Montfort's gentle sway. 

Their working-tools they wielded long. 
Then closed the Lodge with happy song ; 
Or round the table formed a ring 
And drained their cups ^Ho Craft and King." 

Yet once, when Montfort took his place, 
A troubled look was on his face. 
While Harnett, in his apron white, 
Sat silent at the Master's right. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 21 



The visiting Brethren, one and all, 
Were welcomed to the spacious hall, 
And Brimage made a record fair 
Of all the Craftsmen gathered there. 

"Mj Brothers,'' said the Master old, 
^'Sad tidings for the Craft I hold ; 
The King, whom we have honored long, 
]^ow seeks to do our country wrong. 

"His forces march and take the field 
To conquer all who will not yield ; 
His free-born subjects he defies. 
And all their chartered rights denies. 



22 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



^'If for the King we take our stand, 
We prove untrue to this fair land ; 
If to the land such help we bring, 
We fight the armies of our king. 

^^l\e told you this unwelcome news, 
And listen now to hear your views ; 
In thisj our sad perplexing plight. 
Wise counsels yet may guide us right.'' 

Then up rose Brim age in his place, 
To Montfort bowed with courtly grace. 
And to the Lodge, assembled there, 
Hastened his homage to declare. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 23 



^'Most Worshipful/' he slowly said, 
''In England I was bom and bred, 
And to this far-off western land 
I journeyed at my King's command. 

''Sworn to maintain his righteous laws. 
If war must come, I'll back his cause ; 
Take heed, lest treason on you bring 
The vengeance of our country's King. 

"Forever honored be his name, 
And may we all uphold his fame ! 
Call me a Tory if you will — 
To good King George I'm loyal still." 



24 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



Then Harnett rose, with heart of fire, 
Bj long oppression roused to ire. 
And curses loud he showered down, 
On all adherents of the Crown. 

In scornful tones rang out his cr j : 
"Let cowards yield who fear to die ! 
But rest assured, my Brothers all, 
With freedom's friends I'll stand or fall. 

"Our fathers, reared on English soil, 
Were long inured to blood and toil ; 
They swept the Spaniards from the sea. 
And founded here a country free. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinmns 25 



''Shall we, the sons of such a race, 
Our sacred heritage disgrace ^ 
Better the gibbet and the grave 
Than creep on earth, a cringing slave! 

''Grand Master Warren gave his life 
At Bunker Hill, in deadly strife ; 
And Masons here, in brave array, 
Have fought where Caswell led the way." 

Beneath the Lodge's windows then 
There passed a line of mounted men, 
While blatant bugles, ringing clear, 
Awoke the echoes far and near. 



26 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



A banner strange these horsemen bore 
Which none had ever seen before ; 
Fair were its white and crimson bars 
And azure field, bedecked with stars. 



Three gallant soldiers, Craftsmen all, 
I^ow sought the old Masonic Hall ; 
And by their grips and tokens true 
Soon passed the portals safely through. 

Patten and Lamb, and Murfree too. 
In uniforms of buff and blue. 
With sabres dangling at their side. 
All entered with a hasty stride. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 27 



"Short time for greetings have we here!" 
Bold Patten cried, in accents clear, 

"With our brave men we're riding post 
To Washington's beleaguered host. 

"From this old State, so dear to all, 
Southward we heard our country's call ; 
And bloody fields the tale can tell 
We tried to do our duty well. 

"Our troops are camped within your town, 
But, ere another sun goes down. 
We'll strike our tents and northward go 
To seek again the hated foe. 



28 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



^'America has sought redress 
And shown the cause of her distress ; 
But England's monarch fiercely swore 
He ne'er would treat with rebels more." 



^'Farewell to peace/' said Montfort then, 
*^You now must fight like free-born men, 

Since by their conduct well we know 

The purpose of the coming foe. 

''But here on earth I cannot stay, 
For sickness holds me in its sway ; 
God have you in His keeping long 
And shield our land from force and wrons: 1 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 29 



'With fond farewell, and wishes warm, 
I close this Lodge in Ample Form ; 
May Heaven's richest blessings fall 
On all the Masons in this hall !" 

When next the Craft in session met, 
The sun of Montf ort's life had set ; 
Thus closed the Master's honored sway, 
Thus passed his noble soul away. 



1913. 



30 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



The Flint-Lock Rifle 

A Tale of the First Whig Victory of the Revolution at 
Moore's Crkek Bridge, North Carolina, February 27, 
1776. 

A rifle on mj chimney hung 

With lock of flint and steel — 
A piece whose summons sharp had rung 

Beside the cannon's peal 
When patriots for freedom fought, 

When waved their blades in air 
Around the homes their sires had sought 

Mid Indian forests fair. 

Within an arm-chair's warm embrace 

In weariness I lay, 
Before a cheerful fireplace 

Which drove dull care away ; 
Then gazing on the weapon grim, 

I thought upon the past, 
I^or recked I that my blaze grew dim, 

And wintry was the blast. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 31 



And now, it seems, in vision clear, 

Another scene I see — 
In comes an ancient pioneer 

And doffs his cap to me; 
Around the room he casts his eyes 

Till on the gun they fall. 
And then, unheeding my surprise, 

He lifts it from the wall. 

"In spirit land I long have dwelt," 

He thus his tale began, 
"And in the silent hours have felt 
So far remote from man 
That o'er the earth my eyes were cast 

To find some token old. 
And fate rewards my search at last 
With this dear prize I hold. 



32 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



"This rifle true, now owned by jou, 

Was once mj pride and trust, 
It heard the red man's fierce halloo, 

And dashed him to the dust ; 
In peace, it filled mj board with game, 

In war, it played its part, 
And when the Tories charging came 

It found their leader's heart. 

^^Recalling now the years long dead, 

Methinks again I hear 
MacDonald's Highland legions tread 

The pathway to Cape Fear; 
A winding creek they soon behold. 

Spanned by a bridge of pine. 
Where, like the Spartan host of old. 

Stands drawn our battle line. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 33 



" ^King George and broadswords !' fierce and 
loud 
'Next rings their slogan call, 
As the great chieftain, brave MacLeod, 

Comes rushing to his fall ; 
Yet onward still, with charge and cheer, 

His clansmen press the fight. 
As paladins, unknown to fear. 
With claymores long and bright. 

"The bridge was long, with planks uptorn, 

The stream ran swift below. 
Yet quick to dare this hope forlorn, 

Pressed forward still our foe; 
Before our rifles' deadly crack 

Full brave they made a stand. 
But faltered on the narrow track 

Ere they had gained the land. 



34: Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



"Then, drenched with blood, they onward bore, 

While still was spared them breath, 
And fell our fatal guns before — 

Unconquered still in death! 
Thus darkly closed that deadly fray 

And Freedom's sun uprose. 
To shine on happier scenes today 

When vanquished are our foes." 

The pioneer thus closed his tale, 

Assumed a martial tread, 
And pausing there, so tall and pale, 

Thus solemnly he said : 
"When other foes our country smite. 

And she's cast down with doubt, 
I'll bring this rifle to the fight 

And help to drive them out.'' 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 35 



Then waving me a fond adieu, 

My guest no longer spoke, 
His presence faded out of view — 

And slowly I awoke! 
Upon the chimney once again 

Was seen the hunter's friend, 
My fire in ashes long had lain 

And night was at an end. 



1909. 



36 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 
King's Mountain* 

October 7. 1780. 

Fierce Ferguson came marching down 
And pitched his tents at Gilbert Town, 

Within the Old Korth State ; 
No man who viewed his strong array, 
Upholding Britain's iron sway, 

Could then foresee his fate. 

He bade his messengers proclaim 
A pardon, in King George's name. 

To each repentant foe ; 
And tales they told on every hand 
Of how the rebels brought the land 

To misery and woe — 

^'Georgia has yielded to the Crown, 
The old Palmetto flag is down, 

Xew England sues for peace; 
Upon Virginia's rugged shore 
Our reinforcements daily pour, 

So let your treason cease." 



*Tlioiigh the campaign against Ferguson was organized in 
North Carolina, he was two miles inside of Sonth Carolina when 
the battle took place. In his work. South Carolina in the Revolu- 
tion, 1775-1780, pp. 7S9-790, McCrady says the American forces 
at King's Mountain were "composed of 200 Virginians, 510 
North Carolinians, and 100 South Carolinians. The small party 
of Georgians present served with Williams." 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 37 



Then spoke an ancient mountaineer : 
"Naught of New England can we hear, 

But trust her valiant sons; 
Those other States will share our fame 
By helping us your pride to tame 

With hunting-knives and guns. 

"Our own McDowells, hrave and true. 
Are forming now a rendezvous 

On Quaker Meadows fair; 
Hambright, Lenoir, and Cleveland stout, 
With Vance and Winston have come out 

To join their forces there. 

"Shelby and Williams, strong Sevier, 
And Chronicle, devoid of fear. 

Are longing for the fray ; 
And trusty allies from afar 
Are marching to the scene of war 

With all their brave array. 



38 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



"At home, in his Virginia glen, 
Bold Campbell marshals now his men 

To join us in the fight; 
The State upon our southern side, 
Where Lacey's daring troopers ride, 

Is rising in her might. 

"And far away, on Georgia hills, 
Hammond and Clarke resent the ills 

Our country undergoes ; 
They even now, with grim intent, 
Are on this deadly errand bent 

To strike our tyrant foes. 

"So let your gasconading Scot 
Beware the Deckard rifle's shot — 

We know its use full well ! 
And how we'll track him to his lair, 
Leaving his lifeless body there. 
The future years shall tell.'' 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 39 



The speaker paused : then saw afar 
The crippled spy, young Joseph Kerr, 

Come limping on his way ; 
He ran to meet that scout so bold, 
Whose tidings (in a whisper told) 

Described the King's array — 

"Our foes decamped within the night 
And on yon mountain's lofty height 

Have fortified their post; 
They revel there with song and wine, 
And even swear the Power Divine 

Shall not molest their host." 

The old man answered : "Let them stay ! 
Tomorrow, at the break of day, 

We'll seek the Eedcoats there; 
And Ferguson shall sorely rue 
The time his base marauding crew 

First breathed our western air." 



40 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



The morrow's clouds hung low and still 
As up the steep and rugged hill 

A thousand hunters sped; 
With rifles pouring fire and smoke, 
Through bayonets they fiercely broke, 

And piled the ground with dead. 

The Tory leader, in his pride, 
With brave DePeyster by his side, 

The fight would never yield ; 
His silver whistle wildly blew, 
Till, pierced with seven bullets through, 

He dropped upon the field. 

And many a bold assailant fell. 
To save the land he loved so well, 

Before the day was won ; 
Pale Chronicle could rise no more. 
And Williams weltered in his gore 

Beneath the autumn sun. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 41 



When Ferguson was stricken dead 
His men in consternation fled 

To reach the level plain ; 
But in the mountain's lower glades 
They met with countless ambuscades, 

And sought the hill again. 

Surrounded there and brought to bay, 
They yielded up the hopeless fray 

To those bold rebel bands ; 
And never more, with vaunting pride. 
In warlike guise they dared to ride 

Throughout our mountain lands. 

May we, in all the coming years. 
Honor those stalwart pioneers 

Who battled for the right ; 
And may our discords pass away 
Until we reach that happy day 

When men shall cease to fight. 



1913. 



42 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



The Turkey and the Judge 

A Legend or the Pee Dee "Valley in North Carolina. 

While scorching rays of the sultry sun 
Were beating through the trees, 

An old judge lay, one summer's day, 
Reclining at his ease. 

His hairless pate was shining 

Like the mighty gilded dome 
That towers o'er St. Peter's, 

ISTear the Vatican, at Rome; 
And many pleasure-seeking flies 

Had exercised that day 
By skating on his cranium. 

To while their time away. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 43 



A scarlet nightcap then he finds, 

To keep away the flies, 
And meanders through the garden 

Till a shady nook he spies; 
And then his slumber he resumes, 

Lulled by the humming bees 
And the odor of the roses 

That was wafted on the breeze. 

Soon a stately turkey-gobbler 

Sauntered down the winding path, 
When His Honor's flaming turban 

So stirred his inmost wrath, 
That then and there he gobbled out: 

"ril punch his old bald head!" 
And, flying on his prostrate form. 

He struck the jurist dead ! 



44 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



'Twas thus the old colonial judge 

Was gathered to his sires ; 
And even at the present day, 

Beside their cottage fires, 
The farmers of the old Pee Dee 

With morbid fears grow pale. 
And shudder at the rustling leaves, 

As they relate the tale — 

Of how, at midnight's silent hour. 

Within the churchyard green. 
The aged sleeper's ghastly form 

In calm repose is seen ; 
And how the feathered murderer, 

In phantom shape, is said 
To strike again the deadly blow 

Upon his victim's head. 



1895. 



Ballads of Courageoiis Carolinians 45 



Zebulon Baird Vance 

i^ever did Fame record a name 
From falsehood's taint more free; 

ISTever did sinful earth give birth 
To son more brave than he. 

In peace, he was a leader sage, 

In v^ar, a soldier true; 
No secret strife he waged in life, 

His actions all men knew. 

"No ill-got treasure stained his hands, 
'No selfish ends he sought; 

God send our State such men again — 
Men who can ne'er be bought. 



1900. 



46 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 

To Our Confederate Dead 

On Laying the Coenerstone of the Confederate Monu- 
ment IN Raleigh on Mat 22,* 1894. 

!N'oble martyrs ! gently sleeping 

On the hills throughout the South, 
From the lordly old Potomac 

To the Mississippi's mouth, 
From the wave-beat shoals of Ilatteras 

To Antietam's Moody plain, 
In a holy cause you suffered — 

For your country you were slain. 

Now does grateful Carolina 

This fair column proudly rear 
To her chivalrous defenders 

Who, without reproach or fear, 
Four long years, in bloody conflict. 

With the sword her rights maintained — 
Fighting for a land invaded 

Which their fathers' valor gained. 



*The cornerstone of the Confederate Monument in Raleigh 
bears date May 20 (the anniversary of the signing of the Ordi- 
nance of Secession) ; but, as May 20 in 1894 fell on Sunday, the 
laying of the cornerstone took place on the following Tuesday, 
May 22. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 47 



In the shades of Southern forests 

Many of you now repose, 
All unheeding, in your slumbers, 

Earthly joys or human woes; 
Waiting for the final summons 

Of the Master up above. 
To be joined with happy kindred 

In the realms of peace and love. 



1894. 



48 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



A Toast 

Here's to the Sons of the Revolution — 
May they defend the Constitution, 
Uphold our ITation's ancient glory, 
And praise her name in song and story. 



1914. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 49 



Reveries of a Tar-Heel Scribe 

In legends of the Table Kound 
And Arthur's knights so bold, 

We read of Caradoc renowned, 
Bedecked with spurs of gold. 

He fought for fame of lady fair, 

Who was his wedded wife ; 
And lovely maids had champions there 

To mingle in the strife. 

Their swords in deadly combat rang. 

To win the world's renown ; 
And troubadours their praises sang 

In castle, field, and town. 



50 Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 



But now the brave Sir Lancelot, 

Sir Ector, and Sir Kay 
]^o longer tilt at Camelot 

Before their ladies gay. 

Those stalwart knights have passed away 

To join the silent dead; 
And I prefer sweet peace's sway 

To that fierce life they led. 

Honor and fame I may not gain 

In any warlike guise, 
And never win a '^sweet Elaine" 

With love-light in her eyes. 



Ballads of Courageous Carolinians 51 



For I'll not mount a war-horse strong 

To make a minstrel's rhyme ; 
Or kill men as I ride along, 

To pass away my time. 

The pen, as I've been often told. 

Is mightier than the glaive. 
Wherewith were slain those knights of old 

And hurried to their grave. 

So in my Carolina home 

I'll write in peace, and never roam, 

Pass happy moments while I may, 

Welcome the friends who come my way. 

And fill my cup and drink a toast 

To those who love their neighbors most. 



1914. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




014 419 5413 # 



